Should a Family with a 12 and 15 year old book the Maasdam?

[BKFlowerMound]

We are a family of four with boys who are 15 and 12. We are experienced cruisers who've been on six lines, including one cruise on HAL (Zaandam in 2009 to Alaska).

 

My wife and my favorite line is Celebrity. Our two kids have enjoyed all our cruises but would rank the Disney Cruise at the top and the HAL cruise at the bottom - though they still had fun. For my wife and I, the smoking was overwhelming on Zaandam but the current smoking policy on HAL seems to me to be minimally acceptable so long as we don't plan on getting a balcony - and we will sacrifice the balcony on this one.

 

The New England/Canadian Maritime cruise on Maasdam in August appeals to our desire to get out of the Texas heat. The ports look great and we can catch up with family in Boston. But Maasdam has no teen area (it seems) and we are a little concerned that the boys might not have fun. Both of them like their screen time but we would prefer if there were some socializing with other kids. They've liked going to the kids clubs on all the ships they've been on.

 

Does anyone have any guidance for us on this?

[rbp3072]

I didn't bother to check the HAL site, but do the dates for the Veendam work for you? It was just repo'd up there, (literally, as of last Saturday), and should be there for the season as well, along with the Maasdam. I know it has Club HAL on board. I saw 1 (one) teen on board our trip, but that was also the initial move from FLL up that way, so didn't expect many folks to pull their kiddos out of school so close to the end of the school year either.

[rbp3072]

Oh, and the Veendam just came out of a quick carpet/upholstery refresh as well, so everything is nice and pretty, haha. :D

[BKFlowerMound]

I didn't bother to check the HAL site, but do the dates for the Veendam work for you? It was just repo'd up there, (literally, as of last Saturday), and should be there for the season as well, along with the Maasdam. I know it has Club HAL on board. I saw 1 (one) teen on board our trip, but that was also the initial move from FLL up that way, so didn't expect many folks to pull their kiddos out of school so close to the end of the school year either.

 

The Veendam appears to be doing transatlantics and European cruises in July and August. Our cruise window is last week of July and first three weeks of August.

[rbp3072]

The Veendam appears to be doing transatlantics and European cruises in July and August. Our cruise window is last week of July and first three weeks of August.

 

Gotcha, just checked, and she's doing the Canada/NE runs just before and just after your time window. She's taking a break from those and doing a couple of Viking runs during your window. Welp, so much for that idea.

[NYteacher]

We did that trip on the. Maasdam in 2011. Actually during Hurricane Irene so it was a bit of an adventure. Our son was then nine years old and he had a great time. I think it is a bit hit or miss about how many kids 12-15 will be aboard. There were just a couple within my son's range when we travelled.

 

Since you have two, at least you are guaranteed that they can keep each other company. My son likes the low key HAL style.

[MsSteinrunner]

We took this cruise over July 4 last year, and there were at least 20-25 teens on board; we saw them taking dancing lessons as a group in the Crow's Nest among other things.

 

It was fun to watch them!

[Krazy Kruizers]

The Maasdam does have Club HAL --located on the Sports Deck -- Aft.

[mountainmare]

The Loft and Oasis are for teens (Club HAL only goes to 12) and not listed as available on the Maasdam. Decide based on itinerary and what you plan to do in port, I would not count on having kids their ages to hang around with and maybe you will be surprised if there are some.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Right Maasdam does not have the Oasis.

[Typhoon1]

Summer cruises will always have plenty of other youngsters onboard. They'll make plenty of new friends.

[jp2001]

With such a port intensive itinerary, i think you will all be just fine. Only one sea day to enjoy the pool area\gym\etc. and nights for trivia, a show, board games or the like.

But of course all depends on their expectations.... It s by no means Disney but it s a Nice way to see Canada New England ports.

[tgetz]

We have been raising our grandchildren now aged 13 and 15 ,and they have loved the Maasdam- even on a 35 day trip with a really small group of teens. If you, or your travel agent, calls HAL they will tell you how many kids are on board per age groups. If it is the same captain they did have, his beautiful wife and some of the his children will also be on the ship in the summer. we also took the kids when they were very young- 6 and 8 on the Maasdam on this same itinerary, and we where shocked at how many kids were on board. The staff is great with teens. They would always cook different foods for my picky teenage girl. with the shorter cruises HAL does have a lot of kids.

And I definitely agree, it is a great place to go to get out of this Heat. :-)

[Cruiser Bruiser]

We have been raising our grandchildren now aged 13 and 15 ,and they have loved the Maasdam- even on a 35 day trip with a really small group of teens. If you, or your travel agent, calls HAL they will tell you how many kids are on board per age groups. If it is the same captain they did have, his beautiful wife and some of the his children will also be on the ship in the summer. we also took the kids when they were very young- 6 and 8 on the Maasdam on this same itinerary, and we where shocked at how many kids were on board. The staff is great with teens. They would always cook different foods for my picky teenage girl. with the shorter cruises HAL does have a lot of kids.

And I definitely agree, it is a great place to go to get out of this Heat. :-)

 

I'm taking my 17-year old nice on this itinerary on the Maasdam June 2015, rather than sailing the Norwegian Breakaway. (This is a high school graduation present, and Isabelle will only be 3 months away from turning 18.) Whereas I'm certain there would be no lack of social opportunities on Breakaway, I'm less confident she'll meet kids her own age on Maasdam. That said, I know that she's actually looking for the sophisticated experience that she'll find on Maasdam and in Boston, Quebec City and Montreal. I'm glad to read all of the reports about the prevalence of younger people on these summer sailings. Cheers.

[Chris Holland]

During our Christmas and New Year's cruise last December there were plenty of teens around that age. They played in the pool and met each other quite often. They seemed to have a good time and lots of fun.

[BKFlowerMound]

A big thank you to all who responded. We booked the August 9 Montreal to Boston cruise. I will let you know how it goes but we are very excited!

[tgetz]

Have fun and enjoy the cool weather!!!!

[BKFlowerMound]

I wanted to thank everyone who encouraged us to give this cruise a try. We had a nice time. The cruise was better than we expected.

 

There were 90 teens on board and our 15 year old made some friends and had a good time. Our 12 year old enjoyed Club HAL. The ports were nice and the weather was beautiful - nice and cool! Yes, HAL attracts an older demographic than other cruise lines and, yes, that makes for a more sedate experience than even its direct competitors, but, at least on this cruise, it was the nice, interesting, charming older person not the grumpy old bitter ones that are on the boards of retirement communities :D. I hope I age into the kind of older person that was on this cruise.

 

Maasdam is beautifully maintained. Mix, Crows Nest, and Explorations all seem up to date but the Rotterdam Dining Room and the Lido both seem very dated - both the facilities and the food. We wondered, on the food, if HAL is catering to the expectations and desires of the older guests.

 

The staff was very nice. Loved the bar staff in particular. One thing that we missed (slightly) was that the Yum Yum Man wasn't stationed at the exit of the MDR anymore. The treats were still available, but they were self-serve. The Yum Yum Men, there were two, were seating guests. Also, bar prices were good, wine prices are high. Moreover, there were just two Sommeliers on the bottom floor of the dining room and waits could be long.

 

I don't want to get this booted to the smoking thread, but it was something I was concerned about. We booked Oceanview on the Lower Promenade and avoided balconies because of the HAL policy. Smelled smoke once when someone was accidentally violating the policy and smoking a cigar on the outdoor promenade. Wasn't a big deal, I just moved along. We ran into some friends who we didn't know were on the cruise who had a verandah. They said they never smelt smoke. I probably still wouldn't book a verandah on HAL, but I wouldn't avoid HAL either.

 

Overall, we had a very nice, relaxing vacation and would consider HAL again.

[kittercat85]

I went on the Maasdam in the Southern Caribbean when I was 16 and I loved it! Granted, that was 13 years ago but they have a lot more to do now, and more kids are sailing HAL then they were back then. I'm sure you will all have a wonderful trip. That's the next itinerary we are thinking of going on.

 

*edit - so I missed your last update post here - lol Glad you HAD a great trip!!

Edited September 1, 2014 by kittercat85

[tgetz]

SO very glad you had a good time. and I know the weather was better than here. :-) Glad the kids enjoyed because that makes your cruise so much better.

[serendipity1499]

I wanted to thank everyone who encouraged us to give this cruise a try. We had a nice time. The cruise was better than we expected.

 

There were 90 teens on board and our 15 year old made some friends and had a good time. Our 12 year old enjoyed Club HAL. The ports were nice and the weather was beautiful - nice and cool! Yes, HAL attracts an older demographic than other cruise lines and, yes, that makes for a more sedate experience than even its direct competitors, but, at least on this cruise, it was the nice, interesting, charming older person not the grumpy old bitter ones that are on the boards of retirement communities :D. I hope I age into the kind of older person that was on this cruise.

 

Maasdam is beautifully maintained. Mix, Crows Nest, and Explorations all seem up to date but the Rotterdam Dining Room and the Lido both seem very dated - both the facilities and the food. We wondered, on the food, if HAL is catering to the expectations and desires of the older guests.

 

The staff was very nice. Loved the bar staff in particular. One thing that we missed (slightly) was that the Yum Yum Man wasn't stationed at the exit of the MDR anymore. The treats were still available, but they were self-serve. The Yum Yum Men, there were two, were seating guests. Also, bar prices were good, wine prices are high. Moreover, there were just two Sommeliers on the bottom floor of the dining room and waits could be long.

 

I don't want to get this booted to the smoking thread, but it was something I was concerned about. We booked Oceanview on the Lower Promenade and avoided balconies because of the HAL policy. Smelled smoke once when someone was accidentally violating the policy and smoking a cigar on the outdoor promenade. Wasn't a big deal, I just moved along. We ran into some friends who we didn't know were on the cruise who had a verandah. They said they never smelt smoke. I probably still wouldn't book a verandah on HAL, but I wouldn't avoid HAL either.

 

Overall, we had a very nice, relaxing vacation and would consider HAL again.

 

Thanks for reporting back to us.. So happy to hear you & your teenage kids had a good time..

[Daisyloo]

Glad you enjoyed your Maasdam cruise. We have been on her twice and loved her. It's nice to know she is still in good shape.

[PathfinderEss]

Glad to hear you and your kids had a good time on the Maasdam.:)